Author 




Title 



Class ..D..A£L. 



I^OCf 



Inmprinl 



PRELIMINARY ANNOUNCEMENT 



OF THE ORGANIZATION OF 



YOUNG PEOPLE'S 



FARM-LIFE CLUBS 



NORTH CAROLINA 

INSTITUTED BY 

N. C. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 

N. C. A. AND M. COLLEGE 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

M. C. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



(FILE AND PRESERVE FOR FUTURE REFERENCE) 



issued from office of 

Superintendent Public Instruction 

Raleigh, N. C. 1909 



PRELIMINARY ANNOUNCEMENT 



OF THE ORGANIZATION OF 



YOUNG PEOPLE'S 



FARM-LIFE CLUBS 



NORTH CAROLINA ^^ 

INSTITUTED BY 

N. C. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 

N. C. A. AND M. COLLEGE 

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

N. C. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



(FILE AND PRESERVE FOR FUTURE REFERENCE) 



issued from office of < 
Superintendent Public Instruction 
Raleigh. N. C 1909 






E. M. UZZEUL & CO.. 

STATE PRINTERS AND BINDERS. 

RALEIGH, N. C. 



D. Of 0. 

PEE 5 ^^^^ 



LETTER OF STATE SUPERINTENDENT 
TO COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS. 



October 15, 1909. 

My Dear Sir : — -1 ;im sending you for dis- 
tributiou to each teacher of your county 
copies of the Preliminary Announcement of 
the Organization of Young People's Farm- 
life Clubs. Please read the announcement 
carefully. 

Knowing that you are in hearty sympathy 
with our plans, as discussed and explained at 
the recent meeting of the county superintend- 
ents at llendersonville, for stimulating in- 
terest in farm life and for working out a suc- 
cessful method of utilizing the public schools 
for providing better preparation for it for the 
masses of the people, I feel sure that you 
will give j'our hearty co-operation to Profes- 
sor Schaub in the organization and direction 
of these Farm-life Clubs in your county. 
As you know. Professor Schaub has been 
employed, without expense to the State, to 
give his entire time and attention to aiding 
us in malving the schools a more effective 
means for the preparation of our people for 
a more profitable, more comfortable and 
more attractive life on the farm. I know 
that you agree with me that this is perhajis 
at present the most important educational 
problem for at least eighty-two per cent of 
the people of the State, and that it is our 
duty to give our active and hearty support 
to every effort for its successful solution. 

Professor Schaub will work under the di- 
rection of the State Department of Public 
Instruction and the North Carolina College 
of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts. The 
United States Department of Agriculture and 
the North Carolina Department of Agricul- 
ture will heartily co-operate in this work. 

3 



The success, however, of the work in each 
county will depend mainly and almost en- 
tirely upon the active efforts and hearty co- 
operation of the county superintendent and 
the public-school teachers. The interest and 
co-operation of the teachers of your county 
will of course mainly depend upon the 
county superintendent. I beg, therefore, to 
urge you to get into communication at once 
with Professor Schaub, to bring this matter 
at once to the attention of your teachers, 
in your teachers' association, to urge them 
to bring it at once to the attention of the 
children in their schools, and to use your 
county paper constantly to arouse the inter- 
est of all the people of your county in it. 

J. Y. JOYNER, 

Superintendent of Public Instruction. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Farming iu North Caroliua is both a busi- 
ness and a mode of life. As yon know, eighty- 
two out of every one hundred families in our 
State depend directly on the soil for their 
living and their comforts. Therefore, if these 
families ever increase lu wealth, in comfort, 
in ability to educate their own children and 
the children of others, iu ability to help their 
church and their State, they must get this 
increase by better aud more economic farm- 
ing. Any movement, then, to increase our 
farm yields is a direct movement to enlarge 
the comforts of our homes, and to make 
greater our capacity to contribute to good 
government. State improvements, txlucation 
and religion. 

Unfortunately for all these interests, the 
average yield of crops in our State is far too 
low. Compai'ed with the other States aud 
Territories, North Carolina stands forty- 
seventh in its average corn yield. Only three 
States, namely, Georgia, South Carolina, and 
Florida, make on the average less corn per 
acre than we do. New Hampshire, with a 
soil very similar to ours, makes three aud 
one-half times more than North Carolina. 
Our average yield of corn for the past thirty 
years has been only 13.7 bushels per acre. 

It has been again and agaiu demonstrated 
that the corn crop can easily be doubled by 
the application of a few simple, practical, 
scientific principles. Our North Carolina crop 
of corn was last year valued at $39,000,000. 
Suppose we could double this value in two 
years. This increase in value would raise 
thousands of families from poverty to com- 
fort. If by better methods of planting, of 
cultivation, and of selecting seed one thou- 
sand boys can be taught to produce twenty- 



six Imslicls to the acrc^ instead of thirteen 
busliels, there is uo way uf measuring the 
economic good that would result ; for these 
boys would then extend these better methods 
to all their crops and hundreds of slower 
men would follow their example. 

The principles that would lead to such an 
increase can readily be taught in school and 
are being successfully taught every day in 
some schools. Our State law directs that the 
elementary i)rinciples of good farming shall 
be taught in our schools. This law is already 
enforced in our granunar schools, and in many 
of them excellent results are obtained. With 
the estal)lishment of our rural high schools, 
the way seems clear to give farm-life training 
a place in the curriculum worthy of its im- 
])ortance. This olHce is planning to do this 
faithfully. 

As one of the preliminary steps in this new 
teaching, clubs of boys and girls will be or- 
ganized for study, experimenting, and for 
work outside of class liotu's. The interest of 
these pupils will l)e (iuickeue<l and their 
knowledge made more accurate and practical 
by this objective work. For these clubs to 
succeed and to till a vital mission in the 
life of the yoiuig people and of the schools, 
they must have the hearty aid of every 
county superintendent and of every teacher. 

The following is a preliminary outline to 
aid in organizing working clubs of boys and 
girls. Fuller information will l)e furnished 
in later bulletins. 

PLAN OF STATE ORGANIZATION. 

Tile name of these cluiis will be: 
North Carolina Boys' Farm-life Associa- 
tion. 

North Carolina Girls' Home-life Associa- 
tion. 

OIMKC r. 

The objects of this Association are: to 
quicken an interest m school life by linking 
the school more closely with the industries 



of the farm home ; to direct into active, iu- 
telligent service tlie native power in young 
people and to develop this power ; to teacli 
them that taking thought will increase many 
times the return from their fields and add 
immensely to the pleasures of their country 
life; to awaken by a tirst-hand study a wise 
interest in the simple and beautiful laws of 
Nature that underlie all good fanning and all 
domestic industries. 

OFFICERS. 

1. (ieneral Manager. The State Superin- 
tendent of Public Instruction has appointed 
Prof. I. O. Schaub, who is connected with the 
Department of Education and the T'. S. De- 
partment of Agriculture, its General Manager 
of the Association. Professor Schaub is em- 
ployed to give his entire time to this line of 
educational work. 

2. A President, ^'iee President and Secre- 
tary will be elected by the active members at 
each regular annual meeting. 

3. The Advisory Council will consist of the 
Superintendent of I'ublic Instruction, the 
State Commissioner of Agriculture, the Presi- 
dent of the Agricultural and Mechanical Col- 
lege, and the Director of the E.xperiment 
station. 

me.mi!i:k. 

1. Any public-school jnipil between ten and 
twenty years of age may become a member. 

2. Any boy or girl who is a member of a 
County Farm-life >>v Home-life Club, <ii- a 
School Farm-life or Home-life Clul), may 
also bec(mie a member of the State Associa- 
tion. 

3. Any teacher or other person interested 
in the welfare of the Association may become 
;in Honorary Member. 

MKF.TIXCS. 

The State Association will meet iinnually 
at the Agricultural and Mechanical College 
in IJaleigli. This me<'tin;j: will be devoted to 



\ 



business, iustruction, entertaiumeut, and to 
an exhibit of the worli done by members of 
the Association. Prizes will be offered for 
the best exhibits of specified worlv. 

COUNTY ASSOCIATIONS. 

County Associations will be organized as 
follows : 

XAMK. 

County Boys' Farm-life Association. 

County Girls' Home-life Association. 



The object of the County Association will 
be: to unify the work of the individual school 
clubs ; to offer prizes for successful contest- 
ants, and to provide ways for judging these 
contests ; to select exhibits for the State ex- 
iiibit, and to co-operate with that body; to 
liring into closer relation the workers in the 

c()unty. 

Mi;.\iBi;n.s. 

Any school club or any member of such a 
club, or any pupil in the public schools, may 
becouK^ a member of the County Association. 

OFFICERS. 

1. The County Superintendent or some 
capable person appointed by him will be the 
Manager of the County Association. The 
County Superintendent is asked to associate 
with himself two or more intex'ested citizens 
of the county, and these with the Superin- 
tendent will constitute an Advisory Com- 
mittee. 

2. A President, Vice President, and a Secre- 
tary for the County Association will be 
elected at each annual meeting. 



The County Association will have one 
regular meeting a year to transact business, 
and at this meeting exhibits will be displayed, 
judged, prizes awarded, and exhibits for the 
State meeting selected. 



SCHOOL ORGANIZATION. 

School clubs will be formed as follows : 

NAME. 

School Boys' Farm-life Club. 

School Girls' Home-life Club. 



These school clubs will take up directly the 
work to be doue. They will follow the direc- 
tions for planting, cultivating, and harvest- 
ing such crops as may be undertaken, and the 
girls will follow directions for work in do- 
mestic science. These employments will be 
supervised by the teachers, who in turn will 
be aided by the General Manager, the County 
]\Iauager. and by others appointed for this 
purpose. 

MEMBERS. 

1. Any pupil enrolled during the year and 
during previous years may become a member 
of the club. 

2. xVny resident of the school district, who 
is interested in the objects of the club may 
be elected to honorary membership. 

OFFICERS. 

The teacher or principal of the school, or 
some other competent person appointed by 
the County Superintendent, will be General 
Manager of the club. 

2. A President, Vice President, and Secre- 
tary will be elected by the active members, 
and will serve for the school term. 

MEETINGS. 

Meetings will be held as often as may be 
necessary for the welfare of the club. The 
teachers will in a large measure guide these 
meetings into useful channels, and supervise 
the work of the club. 

The first woi'k undertaken by the club will 
be the growing of corn. 



SUGGESTIONS TO THE COUNTY COM- 
MITTEES AND TEACHERS. 

The first thing to be done is to arouse an 
interest among the patrons and pupils of the 
schools and to secure a sufficient number of 
boys as contestants to create rivalry, stimu- 
late euthusiasni and justify the payment of 
prizes. 

To accomplish this tlie County Committees 
sliould enlist the support of their local papers 
to give the proposed contest the greatest 
publicity and urge tlu> boys of tlie county to 
take part. 

Each teacher sliould explain the contest to 
his or her school and urge the pupils and the 
boys of the school district, whether in the 
school or not, to enter their names as con- 
testants. 

In each school district will be found one or 
more progressive farmers who will be glad to 
assist the teachers in arousing local interest, 
if requested to do so. 

If any society or other social gathering of 
the patrons of the school is held at the school- 
house, or in the district, the teacher or some 
intereste<l patron, should take this occasion 
to outline tlic work and urge that the school 
district be well represented in the County 
Contest. 

Finally, each teacher after enrolling as 
many boys as possible should forward their 
names and addresses to the County Superin- 
tendent, lie will make a record of such 
names and in turn forward the list to the 
State Man,Mg(M-. 

CONTESTANTS, STATE AND NATIONAL 
DEMONSTRATORS. 
Every boy entering the contest will be eiv 
rolled with the United States Department of 
Agriculture at Washington as Ji co-operator. 
He will be sent printetl instructions and sug- 
gestions as to the best methods of preparing 
land, planting, fertilizing and cultivation to 
secure a large yield of corn. lie will, also, 
receive from time to time other lessons on the 

10 



value of good seed, how to judge corn, how 
to select seed, how to build up the soil, etc. 

As far as possible, also, the General Man- 
ager and special agents of the Department 
engaged in farm demonstration work in this 
State will in their rounds visit these boys and 
advise and encourage them in their work. 

There should be at least fifty boys entered 
in each county. Indeed, it is hoped that from 
one hundred to five hundred contestants will 
be secured in each county. 

It should be easy to do this if all teachers 
and county committees show sufficient en- 
thusiasm. An enrollment of only four or five 
boys in each school district will give an im- 
posing total for the county. 

In addition, the State Committee expect to 
arrange for State prizes, to be competed for 
hy the winners of the county contests. 

GENERAL RULES. 

Who May Contest — -Any boy over ten and 
under twenty years of age. 

How He May Enter — By giving his name, 
age and address to the County Superintendent 
or any teacher and expressing an intention 
to contest under the rules of the State Com- 
mittee. 

How Much Ground He Must Cultivate — 
Any area he pleases from one acre up. 

Other Requirements— None, except that he 
shall keep a record of all that he does in 
cultivating his plat of ground and forward 
an exhibit of the corn grown to the County 
Committee. 

We invite the Farmers' Unions, Commercial 
Clubs and progressive citizens generally to 
co-operate with us and with the teachers of 
the State in inaugurating these Boys' Clubs 
in North Carolina. 

We believe this movement can be, and will 
be, the means of accomplishing great and last- 
ing good to the State. 

Address all communications with reference 
to Corn Clubs to I. O. SCHAUB. West 
Raleigh, N. C. 

11 



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